MACOMB COUNTY, Mich. – Zachary Fuqua sat shackled inside a booth inside the Macomb County Jail this morning, listening as District Court Judge Suzanne Faunce read off the laundry list of charges against him.
Fuqua, 39, was formally charged with second-degree murder on Friday (March 20) in connection with the brutal killing of his girlfriend, 38-year-old Erika Sanders.
Fuqua also faces five separate gun charges.
The shooting happened around 5:30 p.m. Tuesday at their home on Sterling Street near Van Dyke in Center Line.
Police arrived at the home to find Sanders lying face down, having been shot in the back of the head in front of three of her four children.
According to investigators, Fuqua fled the scene on foot after the shooting and was chased before he was caught and arrested by Center Line and Warren Police at the corner of 10 Mile and Wainwright.
“The defendant had no qualms with shooting his significant other in the back of the head in the presence of three minor children, showing the callousness of his actions,” Jonathan Mycek, Assistant Macomb County prosecutor, said. “As he left the house, he gave the children candy, saying, ‘Here y’all babies go.’”
“Such a person is a danger to the community and must be kept separate from the general community,” Mycek said. Fuqua attempted to say he was not a flight risk, but the judge disagreed and ordered him held without bond.
While no motive for the killing was mentioned, Fuqua’s social media had shown signs recently that he had been going through some sort of crisis.
He posted the four-word phrase “going out with a bang” on his Facebook page on March 14, three days before the shooting.
If convicted on the murder charge, he could spend the rest of his life in prison. His next scheduled court appearance is on April 1 at the 37th District Court.